Indian Culture Exam - English

Which of the following Rigvedic rivers is described as ‘naditama’ (the river par excellence) ?

 

The female Alvar Saint Andal was brought up by:

Buddha’s encounter with the mad elephant Nalagiri, Jet loose by his jealous cousin Devadatta took place at:

Who is regarded as the source of Herodotus for his Indian accounts?

According to Kautilya’s Arthasastra, who among the following was responsible for Issuing coins ?

The paintings of which one of the following caves of Ajanta are datable to the pre-Christian era ?

The Mahastupa of Nagarjunikonda was built during the reign of which of the following ?

The Sixteen goddesses of learning (vidyadevis) led by Saraswati enjoy great importance in which one of the following religious sects ?

Who among the following played the role of a judge in a dance competition described in Malavikagnimitram ?

Ten Asvamedha sacrifices were performed by the kings of which one of the following dynasties ?

Which Telugu author became famous as 'Abhinava Dandi' for transtating Dandin's Dasakumaracharita ?

According to the Dayabhaga school of Law, the son becomes entitled to inherit the ancestral property :

Identify the ruler whose excessive fondness as chweing betel leaf, according to Kalhana, had badly affected the state economy .

Mulavarmana, who performed Bahusuvamakam ritual and made a gift of 20000 cows was the ruler of :

“Even the picture of China was envious of its architectural charm.” Identify which one of the following buildings of Qutbuddin Aibak, Hasan Nizami is comparing with ?

Which of the following writers mentions about two pillars of Asoka brought to Delhi by Sultan Firuz Tughlaq that, “Thousand of men, from mere labourers to artisans and engineers of the highest type were employed. Raw hides- and recds were wound round the pillar to prevent it from breaking. ”

Dalail-i Firuzshahi, which was translated from Sanskrit into Persian, was related to which of the following subjects ?

Who in the fifteenth century built the famous Victory Tower sculptured with Hindu pantheon of deities surmounted by the name ‘Allah’ carved many times in excellent Arabic calligraphy at Chittor ?

Akbar formulated dastur rates under the zabt system. What did dastur rates denote ?

Which one of the following emperors substituted human figures for the pieces of chaupar and tumed it into the amazing game of Chandal-Mandal ?

Which of the following paintings attributed to Mir Sayyid Ali, was painted by him before he entered Humayun’s employment ?

Where was the following missing dispatched by Akbar to induce the famed singer-musician Tansen to come to the Mughal court at Agra ?

Khulasat-us Siyaq mentions the regulations about the clan composition of the troopers to be presented for muster by the nobles. In this regard, which of the following is NOT correct ?

The institution of purdah was to the exclusion of a na-mahram. Which of the following was meant by the term na-mahram ?

To which region belong the forms of folk performances-Khel, Lavani, Goudhal and Tamasha ?

With which Indian playwright, realism in ‘urban theatre reached a new climax ?

Who wrote the following words regarding the  social change in the nineteenth century?

“All progress in social liberation tends to be a change from the law of status to the law of contract, from the restraints of the family and caste customs to the self-imposed restraints of the free will of the individual. ”

The Satyashodhak Samaj was founded in 1873 by :

The author of Birangana Kabya (1862) is :

Who wrote a delightful autobiography-Amar Jiban (My Life) in 1876 ?

What was the main contention in the Rukhmabai case (1884-1887) ?

Whose style of painting blended traditional iconography with realistic features, displaying the influence of contemporary naturalist styles modelled on victorian art ?

The Hindu Code Bill drafted by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar advocated which one of the following ?

The ‘Self-Respect’ Movement was initiated by :

Which Rajput ruler of Amber founded the city of Jaipur ?

From among the following, who does NOT belong to the Subaltern Studies Collective ?

In which city was the first Gandharva Mahavidyalaya founded by Vishnu Digambar Paluskar in 1901 ?

Which of the following officials was NOT concerned with Sultan Alauddin Khalji’s market control measures from whom Alauddin used to receive daily reports about the grain market”

Which of the following are Chalcolithic culture sites of West Bengal ?

(a) Chandoli

(b) Kayatha

(c) Mahishdal

(d) Pandu Rajar Dhibi

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Which of the following formed part of amusements of the Harappan people?

(a) Chess

(b) Dice

(c) Dance

(d) Hunting

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Which of the following are NOT included in the standard list of “WVedangas’ (limbs of the Vedas) ?

(a) Kalpa 

(b) Siksha

(c) Samhita 

(d) Sutra

Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

The traces of earliest temples have been found at which of the following places ?

(a) Bairat

(b) Deogarh

(c) Jandial (Takshasila)

(d) Martand (Kashmir)

Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

The traces of earliest temples have been found at which of the following places?

(a) Bairat

(b) Deogarh

(c) Jandial (Takshasila)

(d) Martand (Kashmir)

Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

Match List-I with List-II:

                    List-I                         List-II

                  (Image)               (Identification)

(a) Chauri-bearing                  I. Didarganj

Image

(b) Gandhara Buddha           II. Lohanipur

Image

(c) Mathura Buddha             III. Schist stone

Image

(d) Stone image torso         IV. Spotted red stone

of a nude figure

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

The Sangam literature speaks of Yavanas living in which of the following seaport towns?

(a) Korkai

(b) Mamallapuram

(c) Puhar

(d) Surparak

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

The rulers of which of the following ancient kingdoms supported the cult of Pattini, the  divine chaste wife?

(a) Chera        (b) Chola

(c) Pandya     (d) Singhala

Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

Which of the following places has yielded life-size portrait statues of Saka-Kushana kings ?

Who among the following wrote commentaries on the Manusmriti?

(a) Kulluka            (b) Govindaraja

(c) Medhatithi       (d) Vishvarupa

Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

Which of the following commentaries were written by Buddhaghosha?

(a) Madhurathavilasini        (b) Manorathapurani s

(c) Samantapasadika         (d) Sumangalvilasini

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Who among the following Gupta rulers issued ‘Chakradhvaja’ type of coins?

(a) Kachagupta             (b) Chandragupta II

(c) Kumaragupta I        (d) Skandagupta

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Which of the following structures are apsidal in plan ?

(a) Dharmaraja Rath, Mamallapuram

(b) Nakul-Sahadeva Rath, Mamallapuram

(c) Durga Temple, Aihole

(d) Meguti Temple, Aihole

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

With regard to Sultan Bahlul Lodi’s polity, which of the following statements are correct?

(a) He did not maintain any personal guards, which was in conformity with the Afghan tradition

(b) His food was not prepared in his palace but was sent, in rotation by the nobles

(c) Mushtaqi says, “He did not sit on the throne in the presence of the nobles and forbade them to stand”

(d) He did not hold the darbar every day 

Choose the correct answer from the options  given below :

Which of the following statements are correct about the medieval cities of India ?

(a) The prominent medieval cities of India were generally located on the banks of rivers. The culers and their nobles occupied river banks

(b) However, most medieval cities were noy situated on the outer bend of the river so that the city could expand on both sides along the riverbank

(c) The city of Vijayanagara was situated on the inner bend of the river, thus practically preventing expansion on both sides

(d) The Vijayanagara palace was located in the folds of rocky mountains . 

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Which of the following statements are correct ?

(a) Babur describes the palaces of the Gwalior Fort, praising especially those which were built by Man Singh Tomar

(b) Babur was astonished at the ability of Indian masons to inlay and bond pieces of coloured stones without the use of mortar

(c) Babur did not like the architecture of the Central Asian city of Samarkand

(d) Babur built mosques at Panipat and Sambhal

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Regarding the Sikh Gurus, which of the following statements are correct ?

(a) The Guru Granth Saheb, the scripture of the Sikhs, was compiled by Guru Arjan in 1604.

(b) It includes compositions of the Sikh Gurus as well as of Shaikh Farid, Namdev, Kabir, Ravidas and other saints

(c) At least till the beginning of the seventeenth century, there was a strong sense among Guru Nanak’s followers that they belong to a general monotheistic movement

(d) A line of Gurus or spiritual successors to Guru Nanak was established. 

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Which of the following are correct with regard to Rajavinoda ?

(a) It was written in Sanskrit by Kalyan Mal

(b) It was prepared at the court of the Muzaffarid sultan Mahmud Begada of Gujarat

(c) The text applauds the deeds of the king by comparing him with epic heroes like Bhima, Arjuna and Karna

(d) In the text, the ruler is represented as  Chakravartin (Universal King) and who is well versed in both politics (Naya) and acting (Naya) and acting (Abhinaya)

Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

One of the most important functions of an ijaradar in the 18th century was to make agriculture credit (taqavi). Taqavi was generally given :

(a) For seeds

(b) For cultivation

(c) Without stating any purpose

(d) To pay cesses

Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

Which of the following features are correct descriptions of Shahr-ashob ?

(a) The Urdu phrase for the grief felt for a city

(b) Poems describing the grandeur of the Mughal court

(c) Poems composed about the Mughal decline in the eighteenth and nineteenth century

(d) Compositions made by Wajid Ali Shah Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

From among the following poets, who used the Urdu literary game-Shahr Ashob ?

(a) Allama Iqbal

(b) Mirza Rafi ‘Sauda’

(c) Mir Taqi ‘Mir’

(d) Kazi Nazrul Islam

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Which of the following statements regarding Munshi Premchand are correct ?

(a) Premchand was among the first to portray the Dalits as independent and recognisable  characters

(b) Premchand was not sensitive to the political movements of his times

(c) One of Premchand’s last and famous stories-Kafan (The Shroud) was first published in Hindi (1935) and later in Urdu (1936)

(d) In his writings, Premchand was more concerned about social evils.

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Which of the following statements are correct ?

(a) The English language was the vehicle through which the first glimpses of the nature of scientific method reached India 

(b) Acceptance of progressive thought of the West did mean the acceptance of the British rule

(c) The new English education made the Indians believe that the ethos of modern English society and the ethos of modern science are identical

(d) A genuine cultural resurgence in the nineteenth century India was effected by way of  ‘cultural induction’-to mean the direct transfer of ideas

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Which among the following statements are correct ?

(a) If historical explanation occurs accidentally, through an oversight, one cannot call them biased but just wrong or unjustified

(b) Colonial history written by the colonizers highlighted the views of the colonized

(c) In historical writing, it is imporant to distinguish between cultural relativism and cultural bias

(d) Postmodern writers do not view history as the product of the historian’s world, of his or her ideas, materials and interests

Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

Who among the following were NOT members of Serampore missionaries ?

(a) Dr. John Wilson

(b) Dr. Murray Mitchell

(c) William Carey

(d) Joshua Marshman

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Match the List-I with List-II.

             List-I                                   List-II

            (Author)                             (Book)

(a) A.L. Basham                 I. India, What can it

Teach Us?

(b) B.N.S. Yadava             II. Sociery and Culture

in Twelfth-Century 

North India

(c) G.C. Pande                IlI. The Legacy of India

(d) Max Muller                IV. The Meaning and

Process of Culture

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Match the List-I with List-II.

                List-I                                    List-II

          (Previous Buddhas)              (Bodhi Tree)

(a) Vipassi                                       I. Pundarika

(b) Sikhi                                          Il. Patali

(c) Vessabhu                                  Ill. Sirisa

(d) Kakusandha                             IV. Sala

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Match the List-I with List-II.

                List-I                                   List-II

             (Poem of                            (Authors)

Patthupattu)

(a) Kurinchipattu                          I. Kausikanar

(b) Malaipadukadom                   II. Kapilar

(c) Maduraikkanchi                    IlI. Napputhanar

(d) Mullaipattu                           IV. Maruthanar

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Match the List-I with List-II.

                List-I                                 List-II

(a) Sahajiya sect                  I. The originator of Dasakuta  movement

(b) Vallabhacharya              II. Introduced Shakti and Tantric practices

(c) Hit Harivamsha              III. Propogated Pushtimarga

(d) Shripadaraya                IV. Founder of Radha Vallabhi sect

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Match the List-I with List-II.

                   List-I                                    List-II

   (Biographical Works)                       (Authors)

(a) Navasahasankacharita              I. Jayanaka

(b) Ramacharita                             II. Bilhana

(c) Vikramankadevacharita           III. Padmagupta Parimala

(d) Prithvirajavijaya                      IV. Sandhyakara Nandin

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Match the List-I with List-II.

         List-I                                List-II

       (Authors)                         (Works)

(a) Tapati Guha                I. Bombay Cinema: An

Thakurta                             archive of the city

(b) Bhikhu Parekh          II. Monuments,Objects, Histories

(c) Ranjani                      III. Women in 

Mazumdar                            Modern India

(d) Geraldine Forbes    IV. Debating India

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Match the List-I with List-II.

                List-I                             List-II

             (Authors)                    (Their works)

(a) Michael Madhusudan     I. Madhali Sthiti

Dutta

(b) Narmadashankar          Il. Saraswati

Lalshankar-‘Narmad’              chandra

(c) Hari Narayan Apte      III. Pingalprakash

(d) Govardhanram           IV. Meghnad-Badh

Madhavram Tripathi             Kabya

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Match the List-I with List-II.

           List-I                       List-II

   (Author/Poet)              (Language)

(a) Lakshminath              I. Oriya

Bezbarua

(b) Radhanath Ray        II. Assamese

(c) Ramaling                 III. Telugu

Swamigal

(d) Chilakamarthi         IV. Tamil

Lakshmi Narasimham

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Match the List-I with List-II.

           List-I                        List-II

       (Historians)            (Their schools)

(a) B.R. Nanda                I. Annales

(b) Anil Seal                    II. Imperialist

(c) Valentine Chirol         IlI. Cambridge

(d) Harbans Mukhia        IV. Nationalist

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Arrange the following in chronological order :

(a) Katyayana, the author of Vartika

(b) Patanjali, the author of Mahabhashya

(c) Yajnavalkya. the author of Yajnavalkya Smriti

(d) Yaska, the author of Nirukta

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Arrange the following eras in the chronological order :

(a) Kalchuri 

(b) Krit

(c) Harsha 

(d) Valabhi

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Arrange chronologically the following copper- plate inscriptions :

(a) Ganjam copper-plate inscription

(b) Madhuban copper-plate inscription

(c) Sui-Bihar copper-plate inscription

(d) Wardak copper-plate inscription

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Chronologically arrange the following works related to the story of Rama :

(a) Balaramayana

(b) Uttararamacharita

(c) Pratimanataka

(d) Raghuvamsa

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Arrange chronologically the following south Indian temples :

(a) Kailasanatha temple of Kanchi

(b) Siva temple of Thanjavur

(c) Srirangam temple of Madurai

(d) Virupaksha temple of Pattadakal

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Arrange the following royal women of substance in sequence starting from the earliest :
(a) Mumtaz Mahal

(b) Rabia Daurani

(c) Mukhduma-i Jahan

(d) Hamid Bano Begum

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Arrange the following rulers of Vijayanagara Empire in chronological order, starting from the earliest :

(a) Mallikarjuna Raya

(b) Virupaksha Raya II

(c) Deva Raya I

(d) Deva Raya II

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Chronologically arrange the following Insha collections starting from the earliest:

(a) Insha-i Tahir

(b) Insha-i Mahru

(c) Ijaz-i Khusrawi

(d) Riyaz-ul Insha

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Chronologically arrange the following social reform associations according to their years of establishment :

(a) Prarthana Samaj

(b) Arya Samaj

(c) Rahnumai Mazdayasnan Sabha

(d) The Radha Saomi Satsang

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Arrange the following institutions in a chronological sequence :

(a) The Arya Samaj Gurukul at Kangri

(b) The Victoria Jubilee Technical Institute at Mumbai

(c) Vishwabharati

(d) The Institute of Science at Bangalore

(e) Association for The Advancement of Scientific and Industrial Education at Kolkata

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Given below are two statements :

Statement I : Objective interpretations in history writing are those which best meet rational criteria of accuracy, comprehensiveness, consistency and openness.

Statement II : The fundamental point of the historical quest has been to ‘discover’ the truth, as opposed to merely ‘inventing’ it.

In light of the above statements, choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

Given below are two statements :

Statement I : The earliest deciphered inscriptions in India were written in the Prakrit language.

Statement II : The use of Sanskrit as an epigraphic medium became widespread in the fourth and fifth centuries A.D., but even then Prakrit continued to be used.

In light of the above statements, choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Given below are two statements:

Statement I : The Mughals also incorporated Sanskrit astrology into courtly practices. Beginning under Humayun, royal horoscopes were cast according to both Indian and Persian systems.

Statement II : Akbar instituted the position of Jyotisraja (or Jotik Rai, “royal astrologer”) in order to have a scholar vested in Indian astrology formally recognised at court and several Brahmans successively held this office into Shahjahan’s reign.

In light of the above statements, choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

Given below are {wo statements.

Statement I : Meaning construction is al the nexus of culture, social structure and social action in historical explanations.

Statement II : Through analysis of narratives, which embody symbolic meaning and codes of understanding. the historian can access the power of culture, both as structure and practice.

In light of the above statements, choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below :

Given below are two statements :

Statement I : Ranjit Guha sought to establish how insurgency might be read from the gaps, fissures, and rhetorical strategies that marked dominant discourses. 

Statement II : Sumit Sarkar stresses the fact that members of the subaltern collective, while critical of “orthodox Marxist theory and practice’, did not retain a Socialist and Marxist outlook. 

In light of the above statements, choose the most appropnate answer from the options given below :

Who introduced the Bill, which was later enacted as child marriage (Restraint) Act in 1929 ?

In which place the Kerala Congress committee decided to launch a satyagraha on March 30, 1924, where untouchables were forbidden to use the road leading to the temple ?

Who wrote The High Caste Hindu Woman ?

Who were the founders of revivalist and militant ‘Gurukul’ faction of the Arya Samajists ?

Which one of the following papers was not conducted by the Servants of India Society ?

Jahangir called the aimas/madad-i : maash holders (holders of charity land) as the :

Which one of the following is not the painter of Jahangir’s Court ?

Identify the emperor who stated about his father’s choice of the Sufi food in the following words: “Of the austerities practiced by my revered father, one was not eating the flesh of animals. During three months of the year he ate meat, and for the remaining nine contented himself with sufi food” :

Who among the following Sultans abolished - the system of assigning igtas to his standing army and paid them a cash salary ?

In the building industry, with new techniques, when did ‘blue, diapered and banded tiles and pottery’ began to be manufactured in India ?

Who among the following is regarded as the father of algebra ?